TSS for "rest weeks"

marmatt said:

I was curious as to what kind of TSS drop do you guys have on a rest week-(eg.50%less) and then when you start up your next block do you increase the TSS in the 5-10 points a day range (if it was 600 before the rest you start at 650) or is it equal to the rest and then build(600,rest,600,then650)thanks in advance

Right now it feels like I'm pretty much in the groove of improvement. I can't imagine "coming up for air" sort of unless/until the coach says to. I think well managed training days and training load make a world of difference. I'm careful not to schedule 150 TSS interval days behind a 250 TSS long ride, or other ways of pretty much screwing the chances of the best workout possible the next day. A lot of that has been trial and error so far and I had to find my "breaking point" in 7 day rolling TSS in December where I ended up off the bike for two unscheduled days to get my legs back. My personal breaking point seemed to be around 200 TSS/day for 7 days, which had me at a painful -50 TSB.

For now, I've been just watching my rolling training load and being smart in scheduling.

marmatt said:

I was curious as to what kind of TSS drop do you guys have on a rest week-(eg.50%less) and then when you start up your next block do you increase the TSS in the 5-10 points a day range (if it was 600 before the rest you start at 650) or is it equal to the rest and then build(600,rest,600,then650)thanks in advance

Using "hybrid" SST/L2 Base program with 2 weeks on 1 recovery I drop TSS ~40%. Good luck 🙂

Don't get too concerned about TSS for the rest week....in a six day rest week take two days off the bike, two days of L1, one day of L2 ,and perhaps an L3 day mid week. I would be very careful doing L4 and above work....if you do any of this do it only mid week or near the ned of the week, for one day and not for that "long".

Remember, the rest week is not for training to stimulate adaptation, it is for rest to allow for supercompensation. Most guys do WAY too much in their weeks....as they are "afraid" to loose fitness. Then they wonder why they aren't getting any better. You won't loose fitness in 5-7 days, after a hard 3-4 weeks of training, even if all you did was sit on the sofa. IN fact you would get stronger.

Train HARD but rest hard too.

RECOVERY is the "Golden Fleece" of training....and almost nobody gets it right.

Here's a quote from Lemond...who in my opinion REALLY knew how to train right.
Regarding the rest week he says...."some riders need only 3-4 days and others need 6-7.( I prefer 6-7) You should still be riding your bike 1-2 hours every other day, during the recuperation period, but you shouldn't be trying to train with it.The key in the recuperation period is as much psychological as it is physical- you don't want to force yourself to get on the bike. Out of an entire rest week you could even take 2-3 days off your bike completely."

marmatt said:

I was curious as to what kind of TSS drop do you guys have on a rest week-(eg.50%less) and then when you start up your next block do you increase the TSS in the 5-10 points a day range (if it was 600 before the rest you start at 650) or is it equal to the rest and then build(600,rest,600,then650)thanks in advance

I tend to go 3 on/ 1 easy, with the TSS for 'on' being 850 - 1000 right now and the rest week 650 - 800. Hours go from 15-19 down to 12-15 for the easy week with intensity dropping down significantly, no intervals, etc. Once I'm through the rest week it's back on, so it would go (850, 950, 1050, 650) or whatever - I don't plan my workouts to hit specific TSS scores. I'm not really looking for super-compensation this time of year, more just an easier week for the mind/body so I stay fresh and motivated. When racing starts, I'll be more strict about really taking it easy on rest weeks.